Do you enjoy woodworking but don’t necessarily think of yourself as a master craftsman? Do you consider yourself a DIY-er who takes pride in completing your own projects? If so, Teds Woodworking may be for you. This is a downloadable DIY resource for woodworking enthusiasts who are searching for detailed plans to build their own projects from start to finish.
But how good is it anyway? Is it beneficial to woodworking enthusiasts of all levels—from beginner to pro? Will the plans included give you enough detailed information that you can actually build from the ground up? We have researched Teds Woodworking and reviewed it here so you can decide for yourself whether this program is worth your time, money, and effort.
About The Author: Ted McGrath
Ted McGrath says his #1 passion is woodworking. He’s a master woodworking craftsman. Apparently, though, this wasn’t always the case. On his website, Mr. McGrath speaks of how much joy he got as a kid watching his master-craftsman grandfather build all sorts of woodworking projects in his own woodshop—but these craftsman genes weren’t passed down to Ted’s dad nor to himself. Did that stop Ted from pursuing his love of woodworking? No. In fact, it seemed to have the opposite effect on him. He spent years pursuing his passion but to no avail. (He even speaks of the first real woodworking project that he pursued after purchasing his own home—a chair that was so awful he says his family still makes fun of it, and he himself calls it a ‘torture device’!)
Mr. McGrath then decided to go to school for woodworking. He spent four years in community college learning it, and he finally became a master craftsman. In fact, today he’s a respected woodworker who’s a member of AWI, the Architectural Woodwork Institute, a professional trade association whose member companies are fabricators of fine woodwork and millwork. But he speaks of the many years he spent pursuing his passion only to find magazines, videos, and online plans that were loaded with mistakes, missing details, poor-quality photos, etc., and so he finally decided it was time to share his knowledge and expertise with others like him who wanted more detailed plans so they, too, could undertake their own DIY woodworking projects and achieve positive results.
What is Teds Woodworking?
Ted McGrath touts his program as being a comprehensive resource for woodworking enthusiasts of all levels, from beginner to advanced. It’s a downloadable tool that includes the following:
Detailed plans of 16,000 woodworking projects: Instant access to step-by-step plans that will help you create your own woodworking projects from start to finish.
Lifetime free monthly plans: Free access for life to all initial plans as well as all the new plans that Ted and his crew come up with on a monthly basis. You don’t have to buy anything else after your initial purchase.
DWG and CAD plan viewer: You will be able to edit and modify plans as you see fit with this DWG and CAD plan viewer.
Helpful tutorials: Tutorials and training videos that give you in-depth visuals on how to perform your woodworking projects from one step to the next.
Woodworking videos: Helpful videos that show master craftsmen performing the same steps you will be taking in order to complete your woodworking project and achieve the same results.
How to start your own woodworking business book: Ted’s ‘How to Start a Woodworking Business’ book will show you how you can make money by selling your own woodworking projects.
Step-by-step instructions: This program provides what Ted McGrath calls ‘detailed, A to Z instructions’ that are designed to allow you to build any of the many projects you’re interested in from start to finish in a fast, easy, and fun way. These instructions are even touted as ‘hold-by-the-hand’ simple so you can achieve your desired results in a fraction of the time it would take you without them.
Detailed schematics: The schematics included in this program are designed to be ‘sharp and colorful’ so as to take out all the guesswork you might find with other plans that often are missing details or steps, or whose schematics are fuzzy or hard to follow.
Views from every angle: The program’s plans include views from all angles so you know precisely what you need to do, from one step to the next, in order to achieve the results that look just like the drawings or photos included. Each plan is said to have ‘intricate details’ that include ‘every corner, every angle, and every joint’ so you’ll never have to guess about what something is supposed to look like or what you’re supposed to do next.
Cutting as well as materials lists: With all the plans come precise cutting and materials lists so you know just what you’ll need to purchase for each and every woodworking project. This way, you won’t have to guess about what you need to buy, and you won’t have to waste money buying things you don’t need. Additionally, you won’t have to spend hours of extra effort running from one store to the next purchasing unnecessary materials or asking questions of sales associates who really know nothing about what needs to be included in any of the projects contained within the program.
Pros and Cons
Like all products, Teds Woodworking has its positive and its negative qualities. You want to know not just the good things about products you’re going to purchase but the bad as well. Therefore, after doing a thorough review of this product, we’ve included both the pros and the cons in this review.
The Pros
Instant access: The program and its plans are downloadable, which means once you click that button and make your initial purchase, you will be able to access everything the program has to offer via your computer or other devices.
Lifetime access: Ted and his crew add more plans every month, and you get lifetime access to all these without making any more purchases.
Thousands of detailed plans: Just as the program states, there are over 16,000 detailed plans included in this program with a wide array of DIY subjects.
One-time purchase: There are no monthly fees with Teds Woodworking. The money you spend on the initial purchase is all you will spend; you get the lifetime access with that purchase.
Downloadable access or via DVD: One great thing about this program is that you can download it yourself, or you can opt for DVDs.
Positively HUGE list of categories: The list of the types of projects you can build with this woodworking program is nearly endless! Here’s just a fraction of the items you can build with Teds Woodworking: Decks, swings, kitchen projects, bird feeders, doll houses, lamps, changing tables, coat racks, media centers, trellises, utility buildings, wagons, wooden toys, cabinets, book cases, fireplaces, file cabinets, windmills, kids’ furniture, adult furniture, doors, dog houses, car ports, fences, and so many more.
The Cons
Daunting amount of information and plans included: Remember, there are 16,000 detailed plans included with this program. That amount of information can be a bit intimidating, particularly if you’re not sure what you’re looking for or what types of projects you’re interested in building.
Not all of the plans will be useful to you: Some of the plans included in this program you will have absolutely no interested in building. However, again, there are over 16,000 plans included, so you’re bound to find many that interest you.
Some of the videos are not highly useful or are not of great quality: Not all the videos included in the project are of high quality. In fact, some of them you may be able to find on YouTube yourself.
Must have a computer or other device to access: There is no physical book or paper material involved in this program. You must have an electronic device such as a computer, laptop, or tablet to access the information contained within it. However, Ted does offer DVDs, if you so choose.
Controversies exist over some of the copyrights: There are some folks online who say Ted McGrath is using other people’s copyrighted plans without their consent. However, we could find nothing online to substantiate this claim.
What People Are Saying About it
We found many testimonials online about the Teds Woodworking resource. Following are some of the reviews of Ted McGrath’s woodworking program:
- Great projects with clear instructions
- The amount of plans is mind-boggling
- I’ve been looking for something like this for years—glad I found out about you guys
- Dressing table took a little longer than your plans stated because I’m not a great carpenter, but my wife loved it
- You saved me tons of money
- This is the best collection of plans I’ve ever seen
- I love these plans—got lots of different ideas and inspiration
- The plans are detailed and super easy to read and understand
- This program is packed with thousands of ideas
- Wish I’d had these when I first started out in woodworking
- Easily one of the best purchases I’ve ever made
Is There a Guarantee?
Yes, Mr. McGrath offers what he calls a ‘100% risk-free unconditional money-back guarantee.’ He says he’s ‘110% certain’ you will be so happy with this woodworking program and plans that you can take up to 60 days to decide if you like it. During that time you will be able to return the program in order to receive a full refund of the entire purchase price back for any reason at all.
Conclusion
Most of the information we have located and learned about Teds Woodworking is positive. This program comes with 16,000+ detailed plans that will guide you from start to finish on your own DIY woodworking projects. There is a large selection of categories and plans to choose from. The program doesn’t come with a hefty price tag to begin with—but it also has a 100% money-back guarantee. And you get lifetime access to all the initial plans plus the new plans Ted and his crew include each month. Are there negatives? Yes. These include the fact that not all the plans are of super-high quality and you definitely won’t be interested in all of them.
Plus, there does seem to be a little controversy written about on various sites regarding copyright questions. However, we could substantiate none of these claims, and no one is going to be interested in every single plan in every DIY resource. Therefore, our conclusion is that Teds Woodworking is a helpful tool that includes a wealth of detailed and well-presented information for woodworking enthusiasts, particularly those who are at the beginner or intermediate levels of this craft.
